Experts warn that as the historic drought continues to bash California, climate change will cause more frequent and vicious wildfires in in the state. "California water policy, water management, and infrastructure need to be changed: those systems were built in an old climate and the reality is, we're in a new climate," said Noah Diffenbaugh, a climatologist at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California.

New data from the International Energy Agency (IEA) shows that global CO2 emissions stalled in 2014 while the economy grew. This marks the first time in four decades that the world economy grows while carbon emissions don't. The change is likely due to an increase in renewable energy.

As the war in Syria enters its fifth year, a new study claims that the conflict in Syria was fuelled by global warming. A devastating drought, which lasted for three years before the start of the conflict, was made more severe due to increased greenhouse gas emissions. The study claims that the drought was 2-3 times more likely because of climate change.

A new global agreement on climate change has been reached after long negotiations in Lima, Peru. The deal would for the first time commit all countries – including developing nations – to cut greenhouse gas emissions. But critics say the agreement amounts to little progress and that it'll do nothing to stop climate disaster.

It’s becoming increasingly common for extreme weather events to occur during the annual COP negotiations for global deal to combat climate change. They largely take place in developing countries who have done little to contribute to the climate change challenge; an unfortunate and noted dichotomy.

Bill McKibben writes that the IPCC’s latest assessment report on climate change is stern – but that it still underestimates the situation. “Breaking the power of the fossil fuel industry won’t be easy, especially since it has to happen fast. But, thanks to the IPCC, no one will ever be able to say they weren’t warned,” McKibben writes.

IPCC, the UN’s expert panel on climate change, released the most important assessment of climate change to date this past weekend. The IPCC warns that if we are to avoid catastrophic climate change the world needs to quickly and sharply reduce global carbon emissions. Luckily, the solutions are available and affordable.

Inaction on climate change will result in costly and deadly consequences for Europe. It's estimated that climate change could cost Europe more than €190 billion, be responsible for the death of hundreds of thousands of Europeans, and result in a net welfare loss of 1.8% of the union's current GDP.

The latest scientific report from IPCC concludes that current efforts to contain global warming are not sufficient to stop catastrophic climate change. To avert climate disaster, the world needs to urgently end its dependence on fossil fuels and switch to green energy. The study concludes that a global roll-out of clean energy is remarkably cheap – but only if we act now.